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"Grim Reaper of Love"
Cover of the 1966 US single
Single by the Turtles
B-side	"Come Back"
Released	May 1966 (1966-05)
Recorded	April 12–13 & 16, 1966
Studio	Western Recorders, Hollywood
Genre	Psychedelic rock raga rock jazz fusion
Length	2:20
Label	White Whale
Songwriter(s)	Chuck Portz Al Nichol
Producer(s)	Bones Howe
The Turtles singles chronology
"You Baby" (1966) "Grim Reaper of Love" (1966) "Outside Chance" (1966)
Audio
"Grim Reaper of Love" on YouTube

"Grim Reaper of Love" is a single by the American rock band the Turtles, written by their lead guitarist Al Nichol and bassist Chuck Portz. By early 1966, the Turtles had achieved three folk rock singles on the Billboard Hot 100, all composed by outside singer-songwriters, to the dismay of the band's members. Their record label White Whale encouraged the Turtles to write original material because of publishing rights, something that inspired the members to write. "Grim Reaper of Love" was written at night following one of the band's gigs in Oregon and finished by the following morning. It is a psychedelic raga rock song owing to the band's newfound will to experiment. The use of drummer Don Murray's quintuple meter (
₄) drum beat was unique to pop at the time, causing the song to be considered an early adapter of jazz fusion.

Producer Bones Howe recorded "Grim Reaper of Love" together with the Turtles at Western Recorders in Hollywood, Los Angeles during sporadic sessions in April 1966. The song features an early usage of the electric sitar on a pop record. White Whale records released "Grim Reaper of Love" as the Turtles fourth single in May 1966, backed by "Come Back". The release was unexpected, as it hadn't been recorded specifically for single release. The song peaked at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming a chart failure which broke the Turtles' run of three consecutive top-30 singles. Upon release, the single received positive reviews in the American press. Retrospectively, it has been praised and been considered a contender for the Turtles' best single. The band's retrospective opinion of the song was mixed. It was the band's last recording with the original line-up.

Background

Between mid-1965 and early 1966, American pop band the Turtles had released three folk rock singles that reached the Billboard Hot 100's top-30; "It Ain't Me, Babe", "Let Me Be" (both 1965) and "You Baby" (1966), of which "It Ain't Me Babe" had reached the top-ten. According to band lead vocalist Howard Kaylan, the success of these singles "legitimized the Turtles" as they had become a "three-hit wonder" which had given them "credibility", headlining shows together with acts such as the Yardbirds, the Animals and the Lovin' Spoonful. However, with exceptions of a few B-sides, none of the three singles had been written by any of the group's six members; "It Ain't Me, Babe" had been written by Bob Dylan, and both "Let Me Be" and "You Baby" were composed by P. F Sloan. This, according to Kaylan, posed a problem as they wanted to "badly be the Beatles".

At the time, the Turtles were signed to the independent record label White Whale Records, ran by Ted Feigin and Lee Lasseff who also owned the band's publishing rights, and, despite doubts over the band's' writing abilities, encouraged them to write original material. This initially manifested itself in the release of the band's second studio album You Baby (1966), which saw an increase in group compositions, with half of the album's content being self-composed. Although Kaylan was their primary composer, almost all band members contributed to the material in some capacity, including guitarists Al Nichol, Jim Tucker and bassist Chuck Portz who would go on to write "Grim Reaper of Love".

Composition and recording

"Grim Reaper of Love" was written collectively by the Turtles' guitarist Al Nichol and bassist Chuck Portz at night following a band gig in Oregon. According to Nichol, the lyrics were primarily written by Portz, who had been "writing a story poem" that was a "little bit on the dark side". Coincidentally, Nichol was experimenting, playing with a newly purchased electric sitar when the duo realized they wanted to come up with something "really off the wall", and "by the next day we more or less had the song written" after finding a proper modal tuning for the song. According to Harold Bronson, "Grim Reaper" was written as an "excercise of the group's new-found interest in psychedelia". Kaylan states that it was written with the Beatles' in mind.

Structurally, "Grim Reaper of Love" was written in the key of D major and has a BPM of 98. It is notable for drummer Don Murray's quintuple meter (
₄) drum beat which prevails throughout the composition, which Nichol wrote as an experiment, since "something in a 5/4 time hadn't really been done in rock'n'roll". The song's sound clearly draws inspirations from Eastern Music, being a "droning, Indian-styled paean to pessimism". Other music critics note the song's clear raga rock style, with Bronson stating that it was a "drone infested with an aura of doom" Writer Michael Uslan insteads classifies "Grim Reaper" as a "morbid psychedelic rock raga". The song's relatively unique time signature has led it to have been classified as an early example of jazz fusion.

"Al and Chuck , cashing in on the Beatles' new interest in Indian music, had written an Eastern-sounding jazz raga in 5/4 time called "Grim Reaper of Love." It wasn't commercial. It wasn't melodic. Shit, it was barely a song."

— Howard Kaylan, Shell Shocked: My Life with the Turtles, Flo and Eddie, and Frank Zappa, etc.

In the spring of 1966, the Turtles recorded an album's worth of material together with producer Bones Howe to give White Whale records a backlog of recordings to pick and choose from. "Grim Reaper of Love" was recorded during these sessions at United Western Recorders in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Work on the song commenced on April 12, 1966, during a nightly session which spanned until April 13. The song's recording was finalized during a later session, on April 16. As with most of their early recording sessions, "Grim Reaper" was produced by Howe. Unlike many other artists in Los Angeles at the time, the Turtles were never substituted by the Wrecking Crew on their recordings due to White Whale Records' lower budget. As a result, all of the Turtles' members perform of the song, including Nichol, who in addition to his lead guitar duties also plays electric sitar. During the mixing for the song's single release, it was decided to cut roughly 20 seconds from the song's instrumental break, bringing the runtime down from 2:42 minutes down to 2:20 minutes. As such, a spoken-word section by drummer Murray saying "close your eyes when your clap" was removed.

Release and commercial performance

"Grim Reaper of Love" was never written for a single release, and thus, the release of it was unsanctioned by the Turtles, particularly Kaylan who wrote that the momentum the band had built-up was abandoned by the release of "Grim Reaper" because "White Whale couldn't find a follow-up" and that it was released solely because Feign and Lasseff owned the Turtles' publishing, "were greedy and had nothing else". Nichol stated that he never "expected it to be a single". Nonetheless, "Grim Reaper of Love" was released as the Turtles fourth single throught White Whale Records in May 1966. The single's B-side was "Come Back", which was written by Kaylan and culled from the You Baby album. According to writer Ken Barnes, the release of "Grim Reaper" as an A-side was "one of the most courageous or career-breaking" decisions commited by a band during the 1960s.

""Grim Reaper of Love"" was going to be a sort of break because none of us wanted to get stereotyped with the AM bubblegum rock'n'roll groups. Musically we knew we were capable of doing a lot more."

— Al Nichol, Solid Zinc: The Turtles Anthology.

Commercially, "Grim Reaper of Love" entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart on June 18, 1966 at a position of 96, before peaking at 81 on June 25. In total, the single spent four weeks on the Billboard chart. On the other major US trade publications, it also peaked at number 95 on the Cash Box Top 100 and 83 on the Record World 100 Top Pops charts. "Grim Reaper" fared the best in Canada, where it peaked at number 61 on the country's RPM Top 100 chart on July 18, 1966. However, as all three previous singles by the Turtles had reached the top-30 in the Billboard charts, "Grim Reaper" was considered a considerable chart failure for the group, and didn't sell as well as their previous singles had. Andrew Sandoval suggests that record buyers were "ill-prepared" for the single's release, whereas Nichol theorized that it was "weird enough" for White Whale to think it had a chance to chart.

Although the single was released during roughly the same time as their second studio album You Baby, "Grim Reaper of Love" was not included on it. Likewise, it was also excluded from the Turtles' third studio album Happy Together in April 1967. "Grim Reaper" would receive it's first album release in October 1967, when it was included on the Turtles' first compilation album Golden Hits. On that album, it appeared in stereo sound for the first time, and was presented in the unedited version with the full instrumental break. More recently, "Grim Reaper" was included on the compilation box set Where the Action Is! Los Angeles Nuggets: 1965–1968 in 2009.

Critical reception and legacy

Upon release in 1966, the single received sparse yet positive review in the American trade publications. Billboard magazine wrote that the single was an "unusual lyric" ballad rouser that had "all the ingredients of the group's previous hit "You Baby", noting Murray's drum performance by stating that it had a "strong beat backing". In Cash Box magazine, the staff reviewer wrote that "Grim Reaper" is a "funky, hard-driving item" which "underscores the dangers of modern romance".

Retrospectively, "Grim Reaper of Love" has been considered one of the Turtles' best singles, with many critics nothing the raga rock influences on the song. Bronson writes that it is an "interesting record" and possibly the "band's best composition at the time", comparing it to the Byrds' more-publicized raga rock single "Eight Miles High", which had been released 2 months prior. Bob Stanley on the contrary, stated that "Grim Reaper" with the raga jazz influences was "outright one of the weirdest 45s of the 1960s". Critic Mike Segretto highlights "Grim Reaper" and the subsequent follow-up single "Outside Chance" as two of the coolest recordings the Turtles ever put to tape. Andrew Sandoval notes the single's heavyocity, something he believes added to the commercial unappeal of it upon release.

"So they released it and it almost ended our brief career. What was radio supposed to do with that? Not much, it turns out. And for the first time, our newfound success seemed to be slipping away".

Band opinion of "Grim Reaper of Love" has been mixed. Kaylan, a notorious critic of the song, stated that it lacked melody and could barely constitute as a song. On the contrary, he and secondary vocalist Mark Volman acknowledged the song's status as "revolutionary", since it altered people's perception of the band. They particularly believed that the single would make radio DJs state that "they wouldn't have to worry about these guys again". The song's co-composer Al Nichol has retrospectively stated that the Turtles' most likely tried achieving a "shock effect" with the release of "Grim Reaper" to the point that he wanted them to go "hey, these guys are weird!"

Nonetheless, "Grim Reaper of Love" and the adjascent April 1966 recording sessions became the final released songs by the Turtles' original line-up. Shortly after the release of "Grim Reaper", drummer Don Murray left the band, citing personal domestic stress alongside a creative tension between Howard Kaylan and Al Nichol, most likely caused by the release of the single. Murray would temporarily be replaced by Joel Larson before John Barbara permanently took his spot. In addition, starting with "Grim Reaper", the Turtles' went through a brief period of commercial decline in popularity during the latter months of 1966, before their fortunes were revived by their sole number 1 single "Happy Together" (1967). In an interview with The Desert Sun, Kaylan stated that the Turtles had to "put out several singles" including "Grim Reaper", all of whom "had had no luck cracking the top 50". He further states if they hadn't recorded "Happy Together", it is likely they would be without a recording contract at the start of 1967.

Personnel

Personnel according to the credits of Save The Turtles: The Turtles Greatest Hits, unless otherwise noted.

• Howard Kaylan – lead vocals
• Mark Volman – vocals
• Al Nichol – lead guitar, electric sitar
• Jim Tucker – rhythm guitar
• Chuck Portz – bass guitar
• Don Murray – drums, spoken word

Charts

References

Notes

1. Catalogue number WW-231.

Citations

1. Sandoval 2016, p. 7.
2. Sandoval 2016, p. 8.
3. ^ "Chart History - The Turtles". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 31, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
4. Kaylan & Tamarkin 2013, p. 58.
5. Sandoval 2002, p. 5.
6. Kaylan & Tamarkin 2013, p. 255.
7. Kaylan & Tamarkin 2013, pp. 59, 255.
8. Bronson 1984, p. 2.
9. ^ Bronson 2013, p. 189.
10. Unterberger, Richie. "You Baby / Let Me Be - Album review by Richie Unterberger". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 19, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
11. Sandoval 2016, pp. 7–8.
12. ^ Sandoval 2016, p. 9.
13. ^ Sandoval 2002, p. 14.
14. ^ Bronson 1984, p. 3.
15. ^ Kaylan & Tamarkin 2013, p. 59.
16. "BPM and key of "Grim Reaper of Love" by the Turtles". SongBPM. Retrieved January 13, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
17. ^ Inglot 2009, p. 10.
18. ^ Barnes 1995, p. 5.
19. ^ Uslan 1981, p. 212.
20. ^ Palao 2009, p. 16.
21. ^ Stanley 2013, p. 184.
22. ^ Segretto 2022, p. 110.
23. Sandoval 2016, pp. 1, 9.
24. Kaylan & Tamarkin 2013, p. 34.
25. Barnes 1995, p. 1.
26. Sandoval 2016, Back cover.
27. McCluskey III, Jamie (June 25, 1966). "Turtles Meet Dylan" (PDF). KRLA Beat. 2 (15): 5. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 20, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
28. Sandoval 2016, p. 1.
29. ^ Sandoval 2002, p. 31.
30. "Hot 100" (PDF). Billboard: 18. June 18, 1966. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 10, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
31. ^ "Hot 100" (PDF). Billboard: 26. June 25, 1966. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 10, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
32. ^ "Cash Box Top 100" (PDF). Cashbox: 6. July 2, 1966. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 19, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
33. ^ "100 Top Pops" (PDF). Record World: 99. July 9, 1966. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 28, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
34. ^ "RPM 100" (PDF). RPM: 13. July 18, 1966. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 2, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
35. ^ Sandoval 2002, p. 35.
36. Campbell, Al. "Golden Hits - Album Review by Al Campbell". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 25, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
37. "Spotlight Singles" (PDF). Billboard: 18. May 28, 1966. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 10, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
38. "Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box: 14. May 28, 1966. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 19, 2024. Retrieved January 13, 2025 – via WorldRadioHistory.
39. Segretto 2022, pp. 110–111.
40. Bronson 2013, pp. 188–189.
41. Kaylan & Tamarkin 2013, pp. 59–60.
42. ^ Sculley, Alan (July 10, 2024). "Annual Turtles tour a 'Happy' one". The Desert Sun. Retrieved January 13, 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

Sources

• Barnes, Ken (1995). Eve Of Destruction (CD). US: LaserLight Digital. 12 599. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
• Bronson, Harold (2013). The Rhino Records Story: Revenge of the Music Nerds (1st ed.). US: SelectBooks. ISBN 978-15-907-913-56.
• Bronson, Harold (1984). 20 Greatest Hits (CD). US: Rhino. R2 5160. Retrieved January 13, 2025.
• Inglot, Bill (2009). Save The Turtles: The Turtles Greatest Hits (CD). US: FloEdCo. MFO 48002.
• Kaylan, Howard; Tamarkin, Jeff (2013). Shell Shocked: My Life with the Turtles, Flo and Eddie, and Frank Zappa, etc (1st ed.). US: Hal Leonard. ISBN 978-14-803-429-34.
• Palao, Alec (2009). Where the Action Is! Los Angeles Nuggets: 1965–1968 (CD). US: Rhino. R2 519759.
• Sandoval, Andrew (2016). All The Singles (CD). US: Manifesto. MFO 48040. Retrieved January 13, 2025.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
• Sandoval, Andrew (2002). Solid Zinc: The Turtles Anthology (CD). US: Rhino. R2 78304. Retrieved January 13, 2025.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
• Segretto, Mike (2022). 33 1/3 Revolutions Per Minute: A Critical Trip Through the Rock LP Era, 1955–1999 (1st ed.). UK: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-14-930-646-01.
• Stanley, Bob (2013). Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop (1st ed.). UK: Faber & Faber. ISBN 978-05-712-819-85.
• Uslan, Michael (1981). Dick Clark's The First 25 Years of Rock and Roll (1st ed.). US: Dell Publishing. ISBN 978-05-174-159-79.

v t e The Turtles
Howard Kaylan Mark Volman Al Nichol Jim Tucker Don Murray Chuck Portz Chip Douglas Joel Larson John Barbata Jim Pons John Seiter
Studio albums	It Ain't Me Babe You Baby Happy Together The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands Turtle Soup
Compilations	Golden Hits More Golden Hits Wooden Head
Singles	"It Ain't Me Babe" "Let Me Be" "You Baby" "Happy Together" "She'd Rather Be with Me" "You Know What I Mean" "She's My Girl" "Elenore" "You Showed Me" "Grim Reaper of Love" "Eve of Destruction"
Related articles	Discography Flo & Eddie My Dinner with Jimi "Christmas Is My Time of Year"
Category

• 1966 singles
• Raga rock songs
• The Turtles songs
• 1966 songs